"What were you thinking?"
Anakin's voice was deadly calm, but there was fire in his yellow-tinted eyes. Luke, for his part, refused to tremble before his father's gaze, meeting his eyes with a spark of defiance. Obi-wan stood off to the side, watching the confrontation anxiously.
The tournament had been cancelled, and Anakin had ordered all of the Council members except Obi-wan to leave the room. The air was charged with tension, and Obi-wan prepared to intervene between the warring father and son.
"I'm sorry, Father. I couldn't help it! I saw Boba Fett coming towards me, and I just... reacted. I didn't mean to use the... you know."
"You didn't mean to? Luke, you are the Crown Prince! Do you have any idea what it looks like, for the prince to break our most important law? What were you thinking!" Anakin practically exploded, clenching his hand in a fist and stepping forward so that he was inches away from his son.
"Maybe my Force powers wouldn't have been so out of control if you had allowed me to train! Allowed me to learn how to control them!"
A deadly silence ripped through the air, and Obi-wan stepped forward, his heart thumping in his ribcage, before the situation could escalate.
"Anakin, that's enough. He didn't mean it." Obi-wan laid a hand on the arm of his old friend, hoping it would help him relax. Instead, Anakin's hate-filled gaze turned to Obi-wan, and he knew that he had only made things worse.
"Luke, go to your rooms. Now," Obi-wan ordered. He barely knew the boy, and he had no right to order the prince to do anything. But Luke seemed to sense the same danger that Obi-wan did, for he left the room immediately, shooting the elder man a grateful look.
And then there was just Obi-wan and Anakin.
"Of course you would take his side."
"Anakin, let me—"
"He's always been like this. He thinks I don't remember, but I do," Anakin paced, frustrated. "When Luke was little, he was always fascinated by the Jedi. I didn't know it at the time, or I would've out a stop to it, but it turns out his tutor, Beru Lars, was a Jedi sympathizer. She filled his head with lies. Even after and her husband were executed, I don't think he ever stopped believing in the brave, heroic Jedi," Anakin stated sarcastically, before shaking his head in disgust.
"I'm sure you did everything you could to indoctrinate your son, and instill in him the hatred of the Jedi that you now possess." This time it was Obi-wan's turn to be sarcastic, the bitterness seeping out of his words. Suddenly, all he could think about was his fallen comrades and his home, destroyed by Skywalker and the clones.
A recklessness filled him, and Obi-wan walked over to where Anakin stood, looking him in the eyes. "What did the Jedi ever do to you, Anakin? What did we do?"
"Don't. Ever. Bring that up again." Anakin's voice was laced with venom. If Obi-wan had been a man twenty years younger, he would've thrown caution to the winds and finally, finally held Anakin accountable for all the horrible things he's done. But he had a daughter. He had Rey, and he couldn't risk anything happening to her.
So, he took a step back, and nodded in acquiescence. "Don't blame Luke, Anakin. He couldn't control it. He will, in time."
Too late, Obi-wan realized that definitely wasn't the right thing to say.
"Control it? And who will teach hin to control it, Obi-wan? Will it be you, teaching my son the ways of the Jedi? Is that why you came here? To turn my son against me? You won't succeed. I promise you that," Anakin spat before turning around and leaving the room, slamming the door behind him.
Obi-wan sighed.
"Well, he always did have a flair for dramatics."
Rey was nervous.
She knew that the Force was outlawed on Coruscant. Really, it was outlawed everywhere, but she and Papa had practiced it all the time. In secret, of course, but on Tatooine, the rules were less strictly enforced, and the men were more loyal to Papa than a King who lived thousands of miles away.
But things were different here. The King had been furious when Luke had used the Force(for some reason, she hadn't even considered that he might be like her, like Papa). She hoped her new friend hadn't gotten in trouble.
She had just ditched her dancing tutor and was walking down the halls when she spied Papa, speaking quietly to the Prince in a desolate corridor in the West Wing.
Strange. Everyone knew what the West Wing was, or what it had been. An abandoned Temple, where Force-users had trained for centuries. For that reason, everyone avoided it. She hid behind a pillar, peeking around it and straining to hear their conversation.
"—talked to the king. Just wait for him to cool down, I'm sure this will blow over. Anakin always did have a temper, but he usually comes around."
Luke nodded before saying, "Thank you, Councillor. For speaking on my behalf."
An awkward silence stretched between the two, before Luke quietly stated, "I heard about you, a couple times. Your name was whispered in these halls often. Sometimes, father would tell me about you himself. Depending on the kind of mood he was in, you were either a traitor, or a hero. As for me... well, when I was little, I imagined you as some crazy old wizard, exiled to Tatooine. Exiled for justice. Exiled for doing the right thing."
"Careful, Luke. Those statements border on treason. That's the last thing you need to be accused of right now. Come on, let us go back to the palace."
"Lord Kenobi, if I may ask one last favor. This isn't the first time my powers have gone out of control. Could you help me? Train me to control them? I mean, I can't exactly asked father, and if I just learned to control them, than maybe he wouldn't be so disappointed in me. Maybe I could prevent something like this from happening again."
At Prince Luke's words, Aryn raced down the corridor, silently slipping out of sight. Whatever Papa's answer to Luke's inquiry would be, she didn't want to hear it.
Because she knew what Luke was asking her father to do. He didn't just ask Obi-wan to train him in the ways of the Jedi, in the ways of the Force.
He was asking Obi-wan to commit treason.
Obi-wan was on edge.
Anakin had been enraged the other day. Now, he was positively gleeful, a smug smile on his face. Strangely enough, Padmé, Luke, and Leia all looked upset, their frowns a stark contrast to Anakin's grin. When Luke saw Obi-wan enter the throne room, he shot him an apologetic look, which did nothing to set his mind at ease.
"Attention, my good subjects! It is my pleasure to announce that, after much deliberation, I have found a suitable bride and groom for my son and daughter, respectively. They shall be betrothed today, and a ball shall be held in their honor. When they turn twenty one and turn of age, my son and my daughter will wed the ones I have chosen for them."
Shocked gasps and murmurs broke out. Obi-wan couldn't believe it. Why hadn't Anakin consulted his Council about this?
"It is my pleasure to announce that Princess Leia will be betrothed to Prince Isolder of the Hapes Consortium. The crown prince, Luke Skywalker, will be betrothed to Rey Kenobi, of Tatooine."
Dimly, Obi-wan was aware of scattered applause at the announcement, and Rey, her eyes growing wide, a horrified expression on her face to match Obi-wan's.
This couldn't be happening. He thought he'd have time, that Rey would have time... but once again, Anakin had taken matters into his own hands.
"Obi-wan, I see that we'll be sharing a grandchild soon. How pleasant," Padmé stepped in front of him, lacing her words with a saccharine affection. "Personally, I thought the princess of Serenno was a better match, but your daughter will do, I suppose. She is only a few years younger than my son, after all. And Anakin doesn't always consult me on these things, so given the circumstances, I guess it's acceptable." If Obi-wan had been paying more attention, he might've heard the bitterness in Padmé's voice.
But he was still reeling from Anakin's announcement, and found himself unable to process her next words. "I mean, atleast she's beautiful, Obi-wan. What with her dark hair, tan skin, and hazel eyes... strange coloring for a child of yours. I mean, both you and Satine have blue eyes. Her family members all have blonde hair, and you have auburn. I've always thought that is was a bit unusual; your child shares none of your features."
Obi-wan stiffened. "I don't know what you're implying, your grace."
"I'm not implying anything, my dear old friend," Padmé whispered before leaving him standing in the middle of the room. Obi-wan's head was pounding from Rey's betrothal and Padmé's questioning, but somehow he made it to the throne of the king.
"Anakin, you can't do this. You didn't even consult me, or Rey! How dare-"
"How dare I, Obi-wan? I can do anything I want. I am the King. In case you're wondering, this is a warning. If you try to turn my son against me, then your daughter will suffer as well," Anakin glared at him sternly.
"An eye for an eye, my old friend. A daughter for a son."
Rey didn't even remember running out of the room.
The world became a whirl of colors as she ran out of the palace and to the stables. She got her horse and rode out of the stables. The foliage of the forest all blended together, and the world around her disappeared entirely. She wasn't a lady, betrothed to the prince. She was Rey Kenobi, daughter of one of the greatest Jedi who ever lived. It was her destiny to be a knight, no matter what some stupid king said.
It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair.
"Rey! Wait... Rey, wait!" Obi-wan called out, catching up to her with his own steed. If it had been anyone else, Rey would've kept riding, but it was papa, so she stopped. "Why didn't you stop him? Why papa?" Rey called out angrily, as she got down from her horse.
Obi-wan paused, looking at her with regret-filled eyes. Slowly, he pulled out a wooden sword from the hilt. He then wordlessly handed Rey a sword of her own.
He got into the Soresu ready position, and Rey countered with a Djem So stance. They looked into each other's eyes for a moment.
Then, they duelled.
Rey released her rage, her frustration with her inability to control her future, into the Force. She went on the offensive, striking her father on the left side, where she knew he often let his guard down. Her father countered with a strike of his own, creating a nearly impenetrable shield around himself. His defense was impeccable.
They went on like that for a while, exchanging parries and blows. Finally, Rey tossed her sword aside, jumping in her father's arms. "Please, Papa. Don't make me do this."
"I'll find a way, Rey. I promise, I'll find a way."
UP NEXT: Rey makes her feelings known to the King, Leia is annoyed, and Luke still dreams